What to buy?

Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by Brownsfan16, Sep 30, 2012.

  1. daf105paccar

    daf105paccar Road Train Member

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    Yes.:yes2557:
    If fact i'm shure you will be greeted by many smiling faces.:biggrin_255:
    But if you will make money with them..................that is another question.:biggrin_25517:
     
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  3. Brownsfan16

    Brownsfan16 Medium Load Member

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    Haha thank you for the answer.
     
  4. scottied67

    scottied67 Road Train Member

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    I had the same idea as this guy before I even attended trucking school. Another classmate of mine later in truck school who was retired was talking about cashing out his retirement to buy a truck outright and go on loadboards. Extrapolate that out across the country's thousands of trucking schools and you have tens of thousands of dreamy wannabe O/O truckers lol.

    Luckily for me I found this site while attending trucking school and took a modified traditional route to being an owner operator. Company driver:Team w/ O/O:Lease Operator:Owner Operator. I sunk my life savings into a truck and run at a huge loss my first year, however that helped tremendously on the taxes.
     
  5. Calspring

    Calspring Light Load Member

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    I will be an enabler however I do not believe this is a smart idea for you. The last thing you should do is purchase the truck. There are several things to do before you get to that point.

    First you have to determine what type of freight you would like to haul dry van, reefer, flatbed etc. Once you know what type of freight you want to haul start calling around to companies to see if any will hire you on. If no one will hire you then you have a very expensive lawn ornament. Have them send the contract so you know what expenses they will cover and what % of the freight you will be paid. You need to be able to approximate what your revenue and expenses will be to see if any of this makes sense (use the search bar and you can find out a lot of that info). Get an estimate on what your insurance costs will be as well. It is hard to get a new business covered with no experience. There are not many insurance companies that cover commercial trucks.
    Only after you have figured that out can you determine what truck to buy. And if you spend any amount of time here it is the question no one will agree on. Lots like one truck for certain reasons and that is all they will ever buy, it may no longer be the best but it is good enough for them but maybe not for you (buying a long hood pete or KW wont do you much good if you spend your whole day trying to back into tight spaces, but people love them because they look good (trucking is a contest of who can fit the most lights on and look like a christmas tree going down the highway :biggrin_2554:). You will have to assess what your requirements are in a truck and make your own decision. How do you like the dash set up. Is there enough legroom and visibility for you. Unfortunately these are all questions you can only answer by putting in some time behind the wheel and a reason why most are saying you are putting the cart way ahead of the horse.

    I dont think anyone is telling you to never buy a new truck. Many here would love to have a new truck free and clear. But to make the best decision and to give yourself the best chance at success you should spend some time as a company driver, figure out what you want and what type freight you want to haul then buy yourself the truck. It may take you 6 months, a year or possibly more but I think by waiting you will be able to make a much better decision and one you wont end up regretting.

    When you do buy a truck while you dont have to make finance payments like the rest of us, you better start saving right away for the next one, because it will probably cost you $200,000 to buy.

    Trucking is not a forgiving industry, and the naive are walked all over. Experience and knowledge are your best protection
     
    Brownsfan16 and Oram Thank this.
  6. jgremlin

    jgremlin Heavy Load Member

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    You can do just about anything if you add the phrase 'regardless of cost' to it. Wanna build a rocket in your garage and fly it to the moon? Its absolutely doable if you specify that its regardless of cost.

    The thing is, in the real world the phrase regardless of cost doesn't apply. I'm pretty sure when Bill Gates is buying a new $45M Gulfstream business jet, he still asks how much it costs when they tell him he can have the seats covered with Peruvian yak hide leather if he wants it.
     
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